


one month later

by empathetiic



Series: original character short stories [3]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen, Mention of attempted suicide, Other, past-tense verbal abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-08
Updated: 2020-06-08
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:08:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 885
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24598780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/empathetiic/pseuds/empathetiic
Summary: trying to patch up damaged relationships.
Series: original character short stories [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1760065





	one month later

**Author's Note:**

> fuck it, changed the series name because i cannot keep up with things. but anyways, throwing around some other characters of mine. there's talk of a past suicide attempt, so please be careful if that's a sensitive topic for you.
> 
> thanks for reading!

Dexame would be coming home today. He'd been in a crisis center for about a month, deeming it necessary for his own mental recovery even though he had been told by the workers there that he could have gone home much earlier. 

The duration of the month has been hell, and unexpectedly so, for Tempes. The silence was deafening, the loneliness was unbearable. He would walk around aimlessly in their empty apartment; no music, no voices, just his footsteps on the hardwood floor and the sound of the air conditioning whirring gently through the ventilation. 

He couldn't understand it. He couldn't understand anything right now.

Tempes was at war with himself; every day brought a new cluster of thoughts that filled his head so much he was convinced it would combust with the pressure. He could feel pain in his temples, behind his eyes, as thought someone were blowing a balloon up in his skull, and it was pressing against every nook and cranny. He didn't know how long he could bear this pain. 

But with the pain, came a bit of clarity. Or at least...realization. 

For so many years, Tempes was angry. He was spiteful, he was depressed. The world was just out to ruin his life, no matter how well he set himself up for success. There was a focal point to this, the start of that pent-up rage- his childhood. It was torn right from his hands. He remembered watching his mother walk out of their apartment for the last time, never turning back. He remembered wondering why, questions that he would come to realize there were no answers to. As a child, there was only one reason he could come up with...or at least, a place to focus his anger. 

He just didn't realize what he had done until now.

He can barely remember that day, one month ago, as though it were several years ago. Every time he thought about it, he would feel his heart in his head, pulsating at his temples. He reached up and rested his hand on his shoulder, feeling the roughness of a scar still healing under his shirt. The only memory that carries from that day was blood- and a lot of it. Staining his shirt, dripping onto the tile in the kitchen and the counter. 

There was panic, and fear. Tempes never felt fear, no matter what he faced. But that day, reality crashed down on him, shattering his shell of the past and leaving it to rot as he moved on. 

Time was passing and he didn't realize until his mind derailed from its previous thought process, a squeaking sound resonating through the apartment grounding him again.

Tempes looked up just in time to see his brother walk into the kitchen from the foyer. The air suddenly thickened, and it felt hard to breathe. Why? What was this? 

"Talk to me, _hermano_." The sound of his voice sent a painful sting from his throat, down to his fingertips, burning for a moment until he swallowed and looked up. The two mirrored each other in that moment; tired, confused, and hurting, in different ways.

"... _lo siento, hermano. Lo siento tanto._ " Despite the shake in his voice, Tempes kept his emotions under wraps, though his eyes glimmered softly in time with the orange lines across his nose, giving away the feelings he refused to acknowledge.

As those words registered in the younger brother's mind, his grip became weak, and the jacket that was in his hand slowly slipped from his fingers and fell by his feet. 

"...what?" His voice was weak and quivering, bright yellow eyes wide as tears brimmed the corners.

A low grumble came from Tempes, and he rubbed the side of his head roughly, frustrated with himself. "I said I'm sorry, Dexame. I don't- this is _hard_ for me. This month has been hell. I don't get it, do you understand?" As Tempes spoke, his voice broke a bit, and he sounded desperate, speaking faster than his mind could keep up with. "When you left, it was just me, I was- I couldn't think about-" Dexame silenced his brother as he grabbed his wrist, stopping him from pushing it against his head so much. The feeling brought his brother back to the moment, and he looked down at his sibling. The only family he had left. 

No emotion. Don't do it.

"So- I'm...sorry." The words stung a bit, and he couldn't understand why. It must have been written on his face, as Dexame let go of Tempes' wrist, taking a step back.

"I was only a child, Tempes. I want you to listen to me, hear me. I can't control the past, and I can't change the fact that Mami left. I'm sorry for what happened, but I couldn't control it. Do you understand?" A loaded question to ask his brother, and Dexame knew this, but he needed an answer, and so he waited. Those few minutes of silence felt like hours, and he could see Tempes tearing himself apart mentally to make sense of their situation. Finally, though, he saw his brother's eyes flash bright, and he released the breath he had been holding in that entire time.

"I don't...not entirely. But I'm going to try."

**Author's Note:**

> so these two characters of mine are descendants of a mythological creature known as the Aatxe, which exist within Spanish and French mythology, specifically the Basque. the face references for my characters is Vito Basso (Tempes) and Matthew Clavane (Dexame). 
> 
> constructive criticism, comments, and kudos appreciated!


End file.
